Whispering Poems

Chapter 3893 Toy Sublimation
"Anything can happen in times of war. Doctor, the college's notice mentioned the Tyranny Club, didn't it? I've heard about them since the Green Lake incident last spring, and they've been quite active right up until the recently concluded Battle of Destiny."

Shad said, but he wasn't worried about that for the time being:

"We're all staying in Tobesk, and our biggest connection to the war is probably just reading the news in the newspapers. The real concern should be for those correspondence students in the war zone, right?"

"The college has granted special regulations to students living in war zones, allowing them to take actions that are normally prohibited in order to protect themselves, their families, and their property."

The doctor said, glancing out the window:
"In short, everyone should cherish the short-lived peace that is about to end. Although the upcoming Civil War will not be earth-shattering, many of the old orders will probably have to change."

Despite his sentiments, the doctor had no particular opinion about the war, viewing it merely as a change in the backdrop of his daily life, since, in his view, the devil was the most important thing.

Priest Augustus was more concerned about the impact of the war on the lives of ordinary people, and whether the deaths brought about by the war would exacerbate the spread of the "calamity of death"—that is, the emergence of more "life-or-death situations"—was also a concern for the old priest.

As for Dorothy, the writer's concern about the war stemmed more from Lacey. However, it wasn't that Lacey desired more territory for Delarios, but rather that she hoped to gain more political resources to help Shad in the future.

On the carriage home after the meeting that day, Dorothy also told Shad that Lacey would be very busy for some time to come:

"She is now in charge of the army's logistics. Although she does not need to leave Tobesk and does not need to personally handle many things, she will probably find it difficult to relax for a while."

However, Lacey still showed up at home for their date this Saturday, and Dorothy, of course, didn't leave either.

"This is the last time in this cycle that fate will be rewritten."

Shad said to them, "Of course the girls know:"
“It’s alright, we weren’t planning on saving money anyway. Besides, we have other things to do together today, right? Let’s have dinner first, and then go to Vista Forest.”

Dorothy and Lacey's trip to the woods wasn't just about soaking in hot springs; they wanted to perform a ritual to learn the magical technique Shad had obtained from the Prophet's Association—the "Sealed Artifact Contract."

As for the [Symbol Technique], some of the precious materials required for learning this extraordinary art cannot be obtained in a short period of time, so we will have to wait a while longer.

Because Shade also wanted to try learning the [Sealing Contract], the girls prepared ritual materials for him.

Three identical ritual arrays were quickly set up under the treehouse where Emilia used to live. The girls who stayed behind helped lead the chocobos who were watching the excitement to another place. Then, Shad and the girls in the forest threw their blank cards forward.

So the three cards were placed on the snow in the center of the three ritual squares, each with its own signature and a drop of blood in the center.

Dorothy and Lacey's ritual arrays were the first to be fully lit, and the girls hurriedly stepped into the ritual arrays.

After Shad inserted his card into the snow, it only illuminated the inner two rings of the ritual array, which consisted of five nested rings. This situation could neither be considered a success nor a failure, and Shad could only wait patiently.

Fortunately, as his blood began to glow almost imperceptibly, the remaining three ritual rings were also lit up. With a sigh of relief, Shad stepped into the center of the ritual array to continue the ritual.

The rest of the process went smoothly, and shortly after Dorothy and Lacey successfully completed their rituals, Shad also completed his.

But unlike the girls who possessed the mysterious art called "Sealing Contract," what Shad heard wasn't about acquiring the art—

[Outsider, the magical technique "Toy Making" has been upgraded. The original effects remain unchanged, but new features have been added: it can transform items into card-like toys; it can also consume spirit energy to seal non-card-like toys created by the caster into cards. When releasing these cards, the caster can choose to release them in either "toy form" or "original form," with no limit on the number of cards. Corresponds to the [Toy Maker] spirit rune.]

After saying that, "she" added with a smile:

[The cards, in that god's eyes, were clearly just toys.]

Lacey and Dorothy's magical abilities are all linked to [card] runes, a power they wielded at the lower levels. And after hearing the hint given by "her," Shad immediately realized that he would no longer need to wander around with pockets full of toys.

All he needs to do now is carry a pocketful of cards.

In the past, Shad's toys were simply scaled-down versions of objects, made of materials like wood, metal, or even wool. He couldn't transform objects into thin playing cards back then. Not having gained magical powers directly like Lacey and the others was actually a good thing for Shad, since "toy making" was much easier now.

[Sealed Item Contract] has a limit on the number of cards that can be created, while the number of toys created by [Toy Manufacturing] is only limited by Shad's spirit. In addition, Shad's magical technique [Treasured Items], after being taught by Miss Metz, the angel of the Old God [Black Robe Lord], at the "Strange Tree Academy," can be used on multiple items and its strength can be enhanced by signing. Shad can completely anchor the blank "Red Butterfly Solitaire" as his new "Treasured Items."

In this way, the cards from the [Sealed Item Contract] can even be used as weapons.

"Your [Toy Making] is a divine art obtained from the Old Gods, while ours is merely a magical art, so of course we can't compare to yours."

After learning the information from Xia De, Lacey said with a smile.

However, the [Sealing Contract] also cannot be applied to relics, or rather, magical techniques that can directly affect relics are extremely rare.

"Then let's try it out and see how it works."

As he spoke, Shad threw a card forward, pinning it to the snow. The palm-sized patch of snow disappeared, and the blank card was now covered with the pattern of the snow.

Shad waved his hand, sending the card flying back into his hand. He then released its sealed contents, causing snow to fall onto his shoes.

"In that case, we need to inform Megan and have her followers produce as many Red Butterfly cards as possible. It seems that the raw materials left by Laplace Howard are running out. For the sake of the future, we need to discuss the procurement with Megan when we have time."

The three continued discussing the magical arts as they headed towards the "Moon Sanctuary." Shad was leaving next Monday, and the writer and the princess planned to give him a proper send-off.

"Come back soon after you've finished your business, we'll miss you."

In the hot spring, Lacey gave a concerned reminder, and then she and Dorothy hugged Shad one after the other; they liked it very much.

(Mia is running.)

The following Sunday, nothing noteworthy happened except for Iluna's return from Fatummister Island. Iluna visited No. 6 St. Teresa's Square at noon, had lunch with Shad and Mia, and afterwards reminded Shad to go home early.

They all seemed worried that Danist would abduct Shad.

Short trips don't require bringing too many clothes, but Winnie still came to the house that afternoon to help Shad pack his luggage.

In the evening, Tifa and her maids prepared a sumptuous dinner. At seven o'clock, Galina and Megan, who emerged from the basement, went up the stairs together.

“I’m leaving Fatummst Island tomorrow, so besides Claire, only Sylvie and Flora will be left.”

Megan briefly explained the situation on the island to Shad, and then everyone began their candlelight dinner. After dinner, they also suggested giving Shad a proper send-off, using almost the same rhetoric as the two girls from the previous day.

That night, Shad unexpectedly discovered that the "breeding" mark, which was considered "useless," had appeared on Megan's body, leaving him quite puzzled.

"What is this doing?"

Audrey wrapped her upper arm around Shad's arm like a snake:
"Anyway, it won't hurt to try it, and don't you think it's pretty? It's pink!"

A hand brushed across Shad's cheek, making him feel as if—no, as if—that Audrey had kissed him. Audrey giggled, while her sister, holding her hand, was busy preparing for the grand feast with the red-haired witch.

Although the food always cooks very quickly and doesn't require much extra work, the girls still like to rinse their mouths and smell the aroma before eating, as this is one of the pleasures of the night.

However, to avoid oversleeping on Monday, Shad didn't stay up late with Megan and Galina that night. He held them and fell asleep after the clock struck midnight.

The next day, early Monday morning, Denise arrived at No. 6 St. Teresa's Square at breakfast time and had breakfast with everyone. Denise was now quite familiar with the witches, so at the breakfast table she joked with them that she wouldn't "borrow" Shad's time for too long.

Mia had sensed early on that Shad was about to leave, glancing at him frequently during breakfast, afraid he might suddenly disappear. But the cat didn't need to worry; Shad would naturally take her with him. He believed the trip wasn't too dangerous and there was no need to leave Mia at home.

Of course, Shad didn't forget to collect his new week's gift before setting off. While the white antelope wool blanket he received this week looked expensive, it was undoubtedly an ordinary gift.

"That puts my mind at ease. If it were a highly functional alchemical weapon or even a relic, that would be a terrible thing."

The corresponding task for this gift is to make sure you're covered up properly at night this week to avoid catching a cold. Shad isn't worried about that, because he knows Daniste will cover him up.